Eternal Suffering
by nooneimportant14
Summary: My first short story, based not on the movie, but on the concept. When someone falls under deep depression, it's not always in their head, it can be passed down by something else, something unexplainable...
1. Suicide

_**Paranormal Activity - Eternal Suffering **_

"_You don't need those cunts…fuck them in hell"_

_***_

_Mr. Neely arrived home late on a Saturday night, as usual since the hospital was always overly busy with new intake of patients. As he pulled up the driveway at 1:30am, he looked at the dark lonely house. When all the lights were off his house always seemed creepy, even though it was full of people. His wife, and his three sons shared this same house with him…yet it just didn't feel the same at night. _

_He lived in a quiet semi-rural village about an hour from the city, a peaceful neighbourhood called Arcadia. Arcadia was filled with families of different descent, mainly Australian and Italian; the community was very positive and nothing much seemed to go wrong; everyone knew each other, but everyone respected privacy. _

_Mr. Neely's house was sat on a small hill by the main road, built on slightly higher ground than the other houses, and was hidden from view by the many over-grown vines that came from the creek. No matter how many times they were cut, they would always grow back to full-length within the next three days, so he stopped bothering._

_He opened the back door quietly, careful not to wake up the rest of the family. The slightest sound would echoed through the tranquil wooden house, so he walked softly toward his room, but suddenly he sensed something behind him, in the far end of the lounge room. Turning around he noticed a faint blue light coming from around the door, and straight away he knew that someone had left the computer on. Angrily, he stomped over the far end to turn it off, but almost jumped as he found his oldest son, Max. He was slouched over the computer chair, his eyes closed, and his chest rising and falling slowly. His neck hung over his lefty shoulder, which looked extremely painful. Mr. Neely continued to stare at his son, but then the computer screen caught his attention. _

'_Consequences Of Suicide' _

_Committing suicide is applying the following acts; 1, Self-Dishonesty. 2, Running away. 3, Perceiving that you are unable to handle responsibility _

_Mr. Neely flickered through the page curiously, not even sure of why he was reading it. _

_Firstly, you must put aside the belief that when you die, all of your thoughts will diminish and all your pain and suffering will cease. This is NOT the case…not only will you continue to feel whatever pain you are feeling, but you will experience it ten times worse, and no one will be aware of your eternal suffering _

_Max jerked his head forward, and his father quickly stepped back, afraid that he would wake up. After about a minute of staring at him carefully, he realised that he was still asleep. Mr. Neely quietly shut the computer down, throwing the room into complete darkness, and then he gently tugged at Max's arm, waking him up. _

"_Max?" He whispered, as Max struggled to stay asleep, "You awake buddy?"._

"…_What?" Max eventually grunted. _

"_You wanna get to bed, you'll hurt your back sleeping out here"_

"_Yep…Wait" Max said, still half asleep, turning away from his dad. _

_Mr. Neely pulled him up slowly and led him to his room, where his bed lay uneven and messed up. He laid him down on top of the covers and then walked quietly over to the door._

"_See you in the morning mate" He whispered, turning back to the bed. _

_Max didn't reply, as he had already gone back to his deep sleep, so Mr. Neely turned around and headed to his own room. His wife was there, under the covers, peacefully lying on her side. Mr. Neely smiled to himself and got into bed, where he suddenly felt the joy of relaxing in a warm comfortable bed, that he didn't need to get out of for work the next day. He lay there, looking up at the white wall, which in the dark, seemed to play tricks on his eyes, revealing many small black clumps which danced over the ceiling. _

_What is wrong with Max? _

_The thought stayed in the back of his mind the whole night, but he didn't really think about it cause he was too tired. Instead, he rolled over, shoved the thought aside and closed his eyes, almost immediately falling to sleep. _


	2. You'll Be So Happy In Heaven

"_I remember the day my dog died…and I knew it was coming but I still felt unprepared when I saw his motionless carcass lying on the front lawn, wrapped up in my brother's yellow blanket"_

"_To look at him you would think that he was still alive, that he was still fighting his sickness…he wasn't hard and stiff, he was soft and cuddly, the way I loved him. We all took turns to say our last words into his ear, our final goodbye…my mum, whose eyes were red with tears, went first…and then my little brother"_

"_Did id bother me that I was the only one who couldn't cry…no…but I couldn't understand because I felt as sad as the others…I stood there with a still face, trying not to speak, not to reveal the crack in my voice, caused by the painful lump of grief in the bottom of my throat" _

"_I waited until everyone had left, and then I moved over to him. After turning around to make sure no one was there, I brushed my hand through his thick brown fur, and rested my head on his side, and pressed my cheek to his forehead…now the tears were finally starting to come"_

"_Hey puppy…I guess this is it…You were such a good dog…The best dog ever…And I'll never forget you okay…I'll always love you…You're such a great dog…" I whispered through constant breaths and sniffles…"You'll be so happy in heaven". _

_I pressed my wet face into his neck, and kissed him hard above the eye for the last time. For a few moments I sat there, and then slowly I got up, turned away and walked back into the house, wiping the tears from my eyes so no body else saw. _

_*** _

_Max woke up in his room, the window was open and the breeze came through over his wet sweaty legs. He lay there with his head pressed into the pillow, for a few seconds to savour to beautiful morning…but then his heart sank, his was engulfed in a dark cloud, his head went light from the sudden outburst of school memories…all the things they said…all the things they laughed at. _

_He lay there for a long time, basking in his familiar surroundings. Floating within the hard sadness that had fallen over him. _

_Another Fucking Day _


	3. I'm Gonna Kill Her

_Max got out of bed, slowly and weakly, and accidentally in rhythm with the clock that sat up on the wall. Max was often get caught in a kind of trance with the clock, where he would have to continually step across the room, and think back on a certain memory, such as someone insulting him about his appearance, or the fact that he was always so paranoid. No one was aware of this problem, cause not even Max understood it, but with the last year he had suddenly become so depressed over everything. Now he was aware of his many problems, as he had always suffered from anxiety, and had been taking medication for it since primary school, but he never told his friends, in fear of sounding like a freak. He was a freak though. Since school had finished, he had shut himself off from everything around him. He failed the HSC and couldn't go to uni, and he felt that all his friends had moved on and forgotten him. They never spoke to him now, he had become so pathetically lonely that he had made already about ten different email accounts so that he could make his own friends on facebook. Still, no one seemed to notice that he wasn't around anymore, and he was sick of it. He had taken shit form his friends all through school, but it was only recently that he remembered them and realised just how little they respected him. _

_As he jumped across the room, he thought through the memory. He was at one of his friend's parties with a friend called Ben, and another girl called Minnie. He had been in love with Minnie for the last three years, but was too unconfident to tell her, and he was also certain that she would reject him. Anyway, he was just being friendly with them, telling them about the new songs he had recently written and uploaded to facebook…then it happened._

_***_

"_Your songs are gay though…can't you write a happy song?" Ben said. _

"_Yeah" Minnie agreed, as usual, which really annoyed Max. _

"_Mate what if I can't write happy songs? And there's nothing wrong with my songs being dark dickhead, so they're not gay" Max argued. _

"_Yeah but they suck…you didn't even record them, didn't you just make them on pro-tools?" Ben laughed. _

_Minnie laughed yet again, "yeah, they're just electronically…it's not like you can actually play them". _

_Max stood up, furious._

"_Fuck it! You know what? I don't need you fuckers putting me down over everything! Why the fuck can't you just treat me like a normal friend?" Max yelled, and after getting no reply, except for both of them laughing, he stormed off. _

_***_

_Max punched his bedroom wall hard, so hard that he made his knuckles bleed._

"_FUCK!!!!!" He screamed painfully, as he slid down to the ground and punched himself twice in the face, as hard as he could. _

"_I HATE YOU!!! I FUCKING HATE YOU!!!"._

_Luckily the rest of his family had left the house early to go shopping, so no one could hear him. He sat there, his eyes red with tears, his right cheek already a light purple. The clock was the only sound now, and it echoed through Max's head. Tick…Tick…Tick…Tick… _

_Max began to cry for a few minutes, slowly feeling the pain of his cheek bone grow, and then he eventually stopped and began to gently rub his cheek…sniffling. _

"…_I'm gonna kill her…" He said to himself, through the slow tears. _

"…_I'm gonna fucking kill her…"_


	4. Fucked Up Little Cunt

_Every day was the same for Max. He just stayed at home, dwelling over many memories of when people had hurt him…and all he wanted was to go and hurt them back. Max had been like this for ages, and things had gotten so bad that he had actually begun to lose his mind, but of course he didn't realise this. While he thought that he was thinking clearly, his family, and his few friends thought that he had become extremely odd lately. Most evidently was the fact that Minnie, the girl who had brought him to this point, had become aware finally of just how much she had hurt him, and whether it was intentional or not, she insisted that she never meant to hurt him, and she promised to be there for him whenever he needed a friend. _

_But the thing was, Max had become so deluded by his thoughts that he could not see that Minnie was genuinely sorry, and wanted to be his friend. Every time he made an attempt to cut her off, she would come back, more upset each time, and reassure his that she "wasn't going anywhere". But still, Max just could not see how she possibly could care about him, after all the shit she had put on him at school. _

_Still, Max found that he still had a painful crush on her, and had become addicted not just to talking to her, but also to see her upset over him. He knew it was sick but he couldn't help it…he wanted her to suffer to properly prove that she was sorry. _

_***_

_Max sat at the computer, looking at Minnie's picture on facebook, his face still hurting from his outburst that morning. He so desperately wanted to talk to her, but he knew that he shouldn't…he didn't want to let her in._

"_There's no fucking way that bitch is coming back" He mumbled to himself, as he gulped down half a beer, which gave him a sickening feeling at the pit of his stomach. _

_Out of all the things Max had become, at least he wasn't an alcoholic, in fact he had no addiction to any alcohol or drugs…apart from anti-depressants, even though they seemed to do nothing. This wasn't all good news for his family though, because what they weren't aware of was that Max had formed a different addiction, an addiction he hoped to keep a secret. To look at Max you wouldn't see anything that odd, apart from his overall unattractiveness, and his recent loss of weight. But if you were to see him without his clothes on, then you would realise that there was nothing normal about him. As he assumed that everyone would think if they found out, he was "a fucked up little cunt" . _


	5. Stains

_All cross Max's chest were red carvings, made by scissors or knives. Whenever Max got caught up in a memory for too long, he felt that the only way to get out of it was to carve it onto his body, which was kind of like accepting it by giving himself and others a physical reminder of what they said to him. On his left shoulder, in deep red slits read the word "fish", as Minnie and Ben had once said he looked like a fish. On his lower stomach read the words "ugly fuck", and on his right waist it said "so alone". Other than these words were just dozens of random slits up, down and across his body. Max's whole chest and stomach had been completely ruined with various cuts, and he knew that there was no way they would ever leave him…although he didn't plan on staying around much longer. _

_***_

_**He looked over at the clock and realised that he had been sitting at the computer, staring at Minnie's picture for almost half an hour. Shaking his head to himself, he clicked on the 'send message' icon, and began to type. The beer had finally gotten through to him, and made him less hesitant about his actions. **_

**"_Hey Minnie, I'm guessing that you're probably sick to death of hearing from me ahaha, but I need to talk to you about something. Things are really bad at the moment and I just need someone to talk to. Of course you don't have to come, but it would mean a lot to me. Anyway, whether you come or not, I'll be up at the church so come around 6:00pm. Hopefully I'll see you there :)_**

_**XXXX** _

_***_

_Max sat there with the mouse on 'send' for a while, considering if he should go ahead with what he was planning. He was taking a big risk here…but he was to depressed to go on without knowing. He had to ask her…_


	6. The Last Night

_The middle of the summer in Australia always meant sweaty humid nights, even if it was raining. As Max stood by the church entrance, which was only five minutes up the road from his house, he looked dully at the sky, which was overcast. His watch read 6:07pm; Max sighed anxiously. _

**_Please God…just let this work out…I'm begging you…even though I don't deserve it…if only this can go well then I promise I'll be happy…Please God_**

_The single-lane road suddenly lit up, and Max saw Minnie's blue car heading towards the church. Nervously, he swallowed and then ran back around the back of the church and pretended to be busy inside. Max had access to the church because his mum was the secretary, so he would constantly get her keys and sit up at the church and pray whenever he got that depressed. As Minnie's car came around, he looked up, gathered his thoughts together and walked over to the car, trying to force a welcoming smile. However, her car sat there, and she didn't get out, which slightly worried Max that she was considering driving away. He finally reached the door and his heart sank, lower than it ever had before. In the driver's seat was her father, and on the passenger seat was Minnie. _

_Her dad looked at Max, with an emotionless face, and then wound down the window. _

"_Hey Max"_

_Max tried his hardest not to show his disappointment. _

"_Hey Justin…how are you?"._

_Justin didn't even bother answering, he just continued to look up at Max. _

"_I'm just gonna wait in here and read so take your time"_

_Max nodded slowly, and then looked at Minnie, who had her eyes focussed on the floor. _

_"Minnie, we'll go into the office" He said _

_Minnie got out of the car and followed Max towards his mum's office. He didn't look at her, but inside his mind was already at full speed. _

_**Why is he here? Doesn't she trust me? Maybe she does think I'm a freak…**_

_They both entered the brightly lit room, and Max beckoned her to sit. He got the chair on the other side of the table. _

_**This is a waste…what the fuck should I do now?**_

_He took a deep breath, dreading every second of this awkward situation._

"_Minnie…I…things have been really bad lately…so…" Max shook his head slowly. _

_Minnie didn't make things any easier, she just stared at him with a cold face. _

"_Fuck it…,Minnie" Max looked into her eyes, "I really like you, you know…regardless of what's happened between us…you're such a good friend…you're like the only friend I have now…and I can't go on without asking you this…"_

_Max looked down as he noticed a frown spread across her beautiful face. _

"…_Will you go out with me?" _


End file.
